The Do’s and Don’ts of a Cash Bar at Your Wedding

Give Your Guests The Heads Up If There’s Going to Be a Cash Bar

The BIGGEST “Do” of any cash bar situation is to simply let your guests know they gotta pay for booze. Cash bars are super practical for the DIY couple or couple who have a sincerely low budget, and guests will be okay with it as long as you tell them before they arrive. Don’t just do word of mouth, be sure to post it on your wedding website and you can even put a cute, little mini note on the R.S.V.P. card to make sure they get the sweet hint.

Some Guests Just Don’t Understand Why You Would Have a Cash Bar

Some guests will forget cash or simply won’t remember that it’s cash only. So don’t catch those few people off guard. Be sure to reserve a tab for your friends that aren’t so wedding savvy, and privately arrange to take on their bill until they can pay you back. Otherwise, have a signature cocktail hour of 1 to 2 drinks per guest provided by the happy couple to say “thank you”, then turn the rest of the night into a cash bar and everyone is stays super happy.

For Those That Have Traveled 

You might want to be prepared to pick up the bill for the guests that have traveled far and wide to attend your big day. Just to say “thanks”, because sometimes it can appear “tacky” to charge those that made a giant effort to congratulate you on saying “I do”. Some people will simply think it’s offensive to have a cash bar at a wedding event. If you feel like you might offend some people simply set out a bottle of white and a bottle of red wine onto each table and have a couple cases of craft beer on ice to please those that might be offended. Then a cash bar for the rest of the eve won’t seem so out of the ordinary.

Keep Your Guests In Line

When it all comes down to the be all and end all of the cash bar debacles: Some guests will abuse an open bar and a cash bar simply keeps everyone from getting totally wasted. Cash bars make guests think about what they are spending and how much they are consuming because it’s not a big “free for all,” so it’s simply safer in the long run for the whole darn wedding.

But! As I’ve said time and time before – it all comes down to what you want, because it’s your big day.